Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) Short Interest Update

Huntsman Corporation (NYSE:HUN) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totaling 17,893,029 shares, a decline of 38.2% from the June 15th total of 28,966,735 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 13,130,981 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days. Currently, 10.9% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Huntsman Stock Performance

Shares of HUN stock traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $11.82. The company had a trading volume of 3,333,165 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,333,057. The stock has a market cap of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.16 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.75. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $13.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.70. Huntsman has a 52-week low of $7.30 and a 52-week high of $16.08.

Huntsman (NYSE:HUN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The basic materials company reported ($0.20) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.23) by $0.03. Huntsman had a negative return on equity of 4.60% and a negative net margin of 5.83%.The business had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.11) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Huntsman will post -0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Huntsman Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.0875 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $0.35 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Huntsman’s dividend payout ratio is presently -18.23%.

Institutional Trading of Huntsman

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Huntsman by 20.8% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 56,481 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 9,720 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Huntsman by 97.0% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,137,285 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,748,000 after purchasing an additional 1,052,127 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Huntsman by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 599,296 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $9,463,000 after purchasing an additional 1,581 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new position in shares of Huntsman during the 1st quarter worth approximately $680,000. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of Huntsman by 34.5% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 14,250 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 3,655 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.81% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HUN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Huntsman from $14.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Huntsman from $12.00 to $14.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $12.00 price target on shares of Huntsman in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $14.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of Huntsman from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $13.67.

Huntsman Company Profile

Huntsman Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals with headquarters in The Woodlands, Texas. Founded in 1970 by entrepreneur Jon Huntsman Sr., the company has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to establish a broad portfolio of products serving diverse end markets. Huntsman maintains a presence in more than 30 countries, operating manufacturing facilities across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.

The company organizes its operations into several core business segments, including Polyurethanes, Performance Products, Advanced Materials, and Textile Effects.